Though an M.B.A. program is a good educational and financial investment, finding the most affordable program is always a good option. Tuition costs for top M.B.A. programs continue to rise, and in most cases a two-year M.B.A. program exceeds $100,000 in tuition fees alone. Even many public school programs are rising rapidly in cost, and are approaching the $100,000 mark. Fortunately, there are quite a few quality, low-cost M.B.A. programs worth considering.

Remember Financial Aid

While top schools like the Harvard Business School or MIT Sloan quote a seemingly impossible tuition price, these schools offer generous financial aid packages. At MIT, for example, a full 69 percent of each M.B.A. class receives some financial aid, and on average, students only pay around $20,674 after aid per year for their degree. Even at Harvard, 60 percent of each class receives aid, and on average this brings the total degree cost to $24,643 per year. So, when looking for an affordable degree, be critical about quoted prices and do your financial aid research.

Single Year Programs

Most M.B.A. programs are two years; however, some are condensed into a single year. While an accelerated program will be more rigorous, it will save an entire year of tuition. Single-year M.B.A. programs include those at Boston University, Northwestern University and Cornell. Northwestern's program has more rigorous admissions criteria, but tuition for the program is only $80,400, which is considerably cheaper than most two-year programs.

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Online Programs

If you're established in your career, and aren't interested in relocating, an online M.B.A. program might make the most sense. And in most cases, this has the benefits of being less expensive, allowing you to continue working and avoid paying relocation costs. Some really inexpensive online programs include those at Eastern New Mexico University, West Texas A&M University and Ball State University. Eastern New Mexico's program, for example, only costs $4,195 for the entire 30-credit hour program.

Programs That Are Just Inexpensive

Some M.B.A. programs don't have to offer significant financial aid, a single-year program or online courses to be less expensive. Instead, they simply don't charge very much for tuition. Examples include Brigham and Young University, American University and Bentley University. Brigham and Young University in Utah only charges $21,900 per year for their M.B.A. degree, while Bentley University only charges $34,904. These schools are also decently ranked among M.B.A. programs, so they don't sacrifice quality for price.

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About the Author

Kevin Wandrei has written extensively on higher education. His work has been published with Kaplan, Textbooks.com, and Shmoop, Inc., among others. He is currently pursuing a Master of Public Administration at Cornell University.